Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award

Eligible applicants must:

• be 18 years of age or older;  
• be a resident of Edmonton (or live within 40km) for at least one year prior to the application deadline; 
• be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or have a valid work permit;  
• be a professional Artist(s). In this context, professional refers to any Artist committed to building and/or pursuing a career in theatre arts. Applicants may not currently be enrolled in post-secondary education specific to theatre. Applicants at any stage of their career (emerging through established) are encouraged to apply; and 
• submit a performance-based project at any stage of development. 

Please note: your project must not have been previously produced in Edmonton. 

The Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award is given annually to one local based theatre Artist or group. The award provides $35,000 in-kind support of a new work, including:

• A venue at the Fringe Theatre Arts Barns for the twelve (12) day run of the show 
• Two (2) Technicians for: 
  • Setup & Strike;  
  • Technical Rehearsals; and 
  • Run of Show. 
• Communications and public relations support
  • Promotion to Fringe audiences via Fringe Fan Club Newsletter;  
  • Social Media posts on all Fringe Theatre channels; and 
  • Collaboration on outreach and Media Relations. 
• Patron Services support 
  • Front of House Staff;  
  • Bar/Concession Staff; and 
  • Opportunity to engage Fringe Volunteer Ushers. 
• Ticketing Service 
  • Tickets sales at tickets.fringetheatre.ca; and
  • Box Office Staff. 
• Production incidentals (up to $200)
• Mentorship  
  • Facilitation of mentorship or consultation based on the needs of the show 
• 100% of net ticket sales 
• Please note: The Artist or group is primarily responsible for audience outreach, marketing, and promotions. Please expect to create your own outreach, marketing, and promotions strategies to sell tickets and achieve your ticket revenue goals.  
• Please note: The recipient of the 2024 Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award will be a part of the 2025/26 Fringe Theatre Season.

Applicants must submit an application form including the following information:

• lead Artist name, email, phone, address, social media handles (if applicable), and website (if applicable); 
• a one paragraph summary of the artistic work you want to create (175 words max);  
• the reasons and motivations behind the project (500 words max);  
• the project plan, including specific activities, benchmarks, and collaborating participants if relevant (500 words max);  
• expected outcomes of the project, including community, artistic, and personal impacts (500 words max);  
• artistic resume or biography including details of your artistic career and training relevant to the project;  
• groups/collectives are encouraged to include a brief history if relevant (150 words max);  
• budget, including potential revenue (including anticipated contributions from funders [ie: which grants are you planning to apply for?], sponsors, donors, etc.) and expenses; and 
• artistic support materials, including images, video, text, or a reasonable combination of all three. 
• please see “Submission Process & Deadline” below for further information regarding your application. 

Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Artistic integrity: do you demonstrate capacity to achieve the artistic goals of the project? Will the project have a considerable impact on the community and your artistic practice? Will the project contribute to the local theatre scene in a meaningful way?  
• Project viability: is the scope of the project manageable? Is the budget realistic?  
• Quality: does your project have the potential to be well executed in its performance, delivery, and staging with a clear depth of thought and story? 
• Diversity: does your project offer new paradigms and perspectives, or give voice to the minority, the unheard, or the overlooked?
• Relevance: does your project reflect issues or concerns in our community, globally or locally? 

Please note: your project must not have been previously produced in Edmonton. 

Fringe Theatre is committed to supporting and fostering the work of diverse Artists whose voices have been historically underrepresented both onstage and behind the scenes in the arts community. We encourage applications from those who are part of the IBPOC, 2SLGBTQ+ communities, and/or other equity-seeking groups. Please read more about Fringe Theatre’s efforts and values here.

Applications will be evaluated by a jury of multidisciplinary artists local to the Edmonton theatre community, to assess each submitted application based on the criteria outlined below. 

The jury is selected annually by the Fringe Theatre leadership team and is comprised of 3 to 5 artistic peers and community members with professional experience and knowledge of the disciplines and organizations under review. The jury reflects a diversity in specializations, artistic practices, cultural backgrounds, and perspectives. In exchange for their service, jurors receive a small bursary. 

Fringe Theatre Artistic Director, Murray Utas, reviews all applications to confirm eligibility. All eligible applications will be shared with jury for evaluation. If we receive a significant number of applications, Fringe Theatre may short list applications before sharing with the jury.  

Each individual juror reviews each eligible application. Jurors then provide an individual and fair evaluation of each application based on the award criteria, while keeping in mind a wide range of artistic styles and practices. Jurors provide their individual evaluations and final reflections to the Artistic Director in the form of a numeric score.  

Scores from all individual jurors are compiled to assign each application a rank. The highest ranked application will be selected as the award recipient.  

Should it be the case that the highest score is achieved by more than one application, Fringe Theatre will undertake a process of weighting individual award criteria to determine the award recipient. 

Jurors are recognized as leaders in our community. As such, each juror commits to: 

• Recognition: Be publicly recognized as a member of the Fringe Theatre Jury. 
• Code of Conduct: Act as a role model in our community. Jurors are asked to sign a Jury Agreement and Code of Conduct. 
• Conflict of Interest: Declare all potential conflicts of interest. 
• Confidentiality: Maintain the confidentiality of the information received and submitted, including discussions and opinions of fellow jurors. 
• Feedback: Provide open and honest feedback regarding your experience as juror so we can continue to refine and improve the experience for future juries. 

Interested in becoming a juror? Please drop us a line: murray.utas@fringetheatre.ca

The successful applicant must agree to: 

• adhere to the program structure, fees, and ticketing structure;  
• meet quarterly with Fringe Theatre Artistic Director to briefly discuss production progress; 
• meet communications and public relations deadlines set by Fringe Theatre;
• submit a final report measuring the overall success of the project and evaluating the award recipient experience; 
• provide Fringe Theatre unlimited rights to publicize, advertise, and promote the applicant and their work in relation to the Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award and their participation in the Fringe Theatre Spotlight program; 
• adhere to Fringe Theatre’s policies, including our Code of Conduct; 
• adhere to all guidelines and agreements within any contracts or contractual obligations required by professional associations, unions, and holders of copyrights for their performances; and accept sole responsibility for making all payments under such contracts; 
• assume sole responsibility for any and all contractual obligations related to the production under their application, and for ensuring the artistic content of the production abides by the laws of local, provincial, and federal bodies;  
• carry liability insurance and provide documentation of liability insurance to Fringe Theatre; and 
• adhere to Fringe Theatre Award Recipient Agreement.  

Failure to comply with or fulfill these agreements could result in the forfeiture of the award.

This application is now closed. The deadline to apply for the 2024 Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award was April 15 at 11:59pm (MST)

Please note: The recipient of the 2024 Westbury Family Fringe Theatre Award will be a part of the 2025/26 Fringe Theatre Season.

Please use the following application form below to apply. Completed applications may be submitted on or before the deadline using the following application form.

Applications may also be submitted by email (PDF please!), letter mail, or in person: Fringe Theatre Arts Barns, 10330 84 Ave, Edmonton AB, T6E 2G9. 

If you have accessibility needs related to your application, or if you have any questions, please contact awards@fringetheatre.ca.